A HIGH street giant with three stores in York has decided to remain shut on Boxing Day.

Following the latest agreement from the UK and devolved Government to temporarily relax restrictions over the Christmas period, M&S has announced it will close its operations on Boxing Day.

It had previously planned to open more than 200 of its stores on December 26 this year.

York's Vangarde M&S store will be open until midnight from December 21 to 23 to help staff and customers socially distance during the shop's busiest days.

The city centre store will be open until 10pm, and the branch at York Designer Outlet will be open until 8pm.

Steve Rowe, CEO at M&S, said: “2020 has been a uniquely challenging year for everyone and this Christmas, the celebrations we have, will be more precious than ever.

"That’s why in the run-up to Christmas we are opening longer hours and have accelerated the launch of new digital services such as Sparks Book & Shop to help our customers prepare.

"But it’s also why we have taken the decision to close our operations on Boxing Day, so that our colleagues can enjoy more special time with their loved ones. This is a big decision, but it is absolutely the right one given the incredible effort everyone has made in the most challenging of circumstances.”

Ahead of Christmas, M&S has put in place new initiatives to help customers shop with confidence – including its new Sparks Book & Shop service allowing people to reserve a shopping slot, and the accelerated rollout of its checkout-free Mobile Pay Go technology to all UK stores.